Chuletas and Salsa Fria with Refried Beans

According to James Beard, this menu is a fusion of Mexican and Spanish influences, but this tasted to me like a cross between a burger and felafel, and maybe better than either one. I can’t wait to eat the leftovers. 

I came across these recipes in James Beard’s American Cookery. He recommends that you make the chuletas a meal by serving them with refried beans and the salsa fria. Both the salsa and the chuletas had so much flavor, it seemed like a waste to serve them together. So I would either serve the salsa with plain burgers, or serve the chuletas with beans. 

I googled “chuletas” and found only recipes for fried pork chops. Odd, but James Beard must have known what he was talking about. His recommendation was to serve these with the salsa fria and refried beans. I am not including a recipe for refried beans, so use your own. 

Chuletas

Ingredients:
2 pounds ground beef
2 cups minced parsley
2 onions chopped fine
2 eggs
1 tablespoon salt
1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese
a squirt of sriracha
fresh ground pepper
1-2 cups breadcrumbs
olive oil for pan frying

Directions:

1. Mix everything together in a bowl except for the breadcrumbs. Roll out about 30 meatballs, using roughly 2 tablespoons of the meat mixture for each one. Put the breadcrumbs in a shallow dish and smoosh each ball into it to form a patty, flipping afterward to coat the other side with breadcrumbs. Each patty will be about 3-4 inches in diameter. Chill them- probably to help the patties hold their shape. 

2. When you are ready to eat them, sauté them in a frying pan with olive oil, flipping once to brown each side. 

Salsa Fria

Ingredients:
2 cups chopped ripe tomatoes
1 onion, finely chopped
1 tablespoon chopped cilantro
a generous pinch of dried oregano
1 pound can of tomatillos drained and chopped
2 tablespoons wine vinegar
1 tablespoon olive oil
salt and pepper to taste

Directions:
Mix and refrigerate.